Monday, June 13, 2011

lately i've been noticing all sorts of random acts of kindness going on around me. it began with the bake sale as i watched how many of you found ways to support the cause, and since then it has felt as though my eyes have been opened! i am a firm believer that we are changed by the things which hold our attention. of course i know all too well how easy it is to get caught up in our worries, stresses, fears, and confusion in life, so i wanted to take a minute right here on my blog to focus on the positive. i hope this can be a great reminder to both you and me that there is a whole lot of good in the world, and that we too can help spread hope, cheer, and peace to the people around us.

so i want to give a great big shout-out to:

* the girl on sunset who picked up a plastic bottle on the sidewalk and put it in the recycling.

* the guy at trader joe's who offered to hold the elderly woman's basket while we waited in line.

* the neighbor lady down the street who stopped by to check on the health of our neighbor kitty who was attacked by a dog last month, and to offer her friendly support.

* my two year old student who gave her toys to another little boy along with a hug.

and in honor of these kind acts, i will be looking extra hard for ways i can make the world a sweeter place for those around me. i will be looking for opportunities to open doors, clean up the neighborhood, offer smiles and waves, give a listening ear, volunteer my helpful services, and anything else that presents itself to me today and through this week. how about you?

{of course we need ideas - everything starts with an idea after all - but it is only through acts that those ideas have any sort of meaning. found here.}

have you seen any random acts of kindness lately?

i would love it if everyone could share at least one act of kindness you've witnessed in the comments. maybe together we can help foster an attitude of giving, pick up a little inspiration for our own positive actions today, and start this week of right.

So many, my mom called me, some friends invited me over for making desert, people offering other peoples rides. Saturday night, I had the privilege of hanging out with some of the sweetest people.They were so present and open. It was truly beautiful people of all nationalities and from all over the world playing and talking together. It reminded me that the world I want to see is possible.

I've actually seen several people pick up trash lately. And my roommate brought home some of my favorite mini cakes this weekend when she found out I didn't get the job I had so hoped to. Honestly, little random acts of kindness are sometimes so much cooler than really huge ones -- it just shows how many people out there have beautiful open hearts.

Oh that is lovely! It wasn't exactly random, but Noah did an act of kindness for me last week. When I had a long day with classes and no time for dinner he made me cookies for when I got home from class.

Something really sweet I saw was something my boyfriend did, actually. It wasn't anything big, but I noticed at that moment that it wasn't something anyone would normally do. We were at an event this weekend and there was a ridiculously long line to buy tickets. A lady told us that there was another ticket booth at the far end, so a group of us walked over. There was a few guys ahead of us, and, as the booth was unassuming, they didn't see it and walked all the way past it. When Mardy noticed where the booth was, he ran after those guys to tell them that the booth was right there.So small but so kind :)

I love the girl who picked up the bottle on Sunset. She's a diamond in the rocks--I know you know this.

I WISH I had seen some random acts of kindness lately. Well actually my neighbors across the way went and ripped the downstairs people a new one for making it impossible for any of us to park properly with the ill-parked vehicles hanging in the alley.

I mentioned last week to my friend Charlotte how much I love Greek food. Today I went to her house for tea and she made us homemade spanakopita, and then sent me home with a container full! Yum! She knows how crazy my schedule is right now, and a delicious, ready-made lunch was just what I needed!

Thank you for your inspiring posts! Random acts of kindness I have witnessed recently: 1. A houseful of strangers opening their home to me for my stay in LA, 2. People connecting me to all kinds of wonderful resources and people despite having just met me, and 3. one person spontaneously paying for the meals of 13 others out of gratitude for being together in that moment. Wonderful!

Three different people held the door for me today when I was balancing a big bag of books and an armful of flowers. Also, a teenage girl on the train offered her seat to an elderly man who accepted but then later offered it to a mom and her baby. Cyclical, it really is!

Sometimes I feel jaded working in a city as big as New York but then I see someone give up his seat for an elderly woman and it renews my faith in humanity. Random acts of kindness are beautiful things to witness (the one about the 2-year-old giving up her toys along with a hug is just too sweet). :)